Apparatus for winding coils



Aug. 7, 1934. E. SNYDER APPARATUS FOR WINDING COILS Filed Dec. 20, 1929 @N W IM Patented Aug. 7, 1934 L.-

Edward Snyder,v ForflWayiie,"assigntirfto k General Cable Corporation;"New Yorlr; N. X

a corporation of New Jersey I H v v Application December 20, 1929, Serial-No. 415441 i I This invention relates generally to a method of and apparatus for winding coils of-wire, and more particularly to an expansible and collapsible mandrel and a method for making layer wound coils. 1 I

. It 'is an object of this invention 'to provide an improved mandrel for winding layer wound coils of the type in which the turns of the first layer are positively positioned on the mandrel in accordance with a predetermined plan; and

the turns of the succeeding layers lie,except.

in the accompanying drawing, in whichi '.Fig. 1 is a side View of the mandrel expanded condition, a portion of the mandrel be ing broken away to show a longitudinal section;

Fig. 2 is an end view taken from'the'rig'ht hand end of Fig. l, the end flange 11 being removed, and a portion of the mandrel broken away to show more clearly the constructionof the mandrel; v

Fig. 3 is a view of the mandrel 1,.the mandrel being in collapsed condition; and

Fig. 4 is an end view of the mandrel substan-' tially on line 4--4 of Fig.3, a portion'ofj'the disclose the con- ..struction.

In winding multiple-layer coils'in which the layers are not spaced from each'other, 'asbyf means of sheets of insulating material, it will be apparent that for a coil having a fixed num ber of. turns, of a given size and kind of wire the cross-sectional area of the coil wall "trans-- mandrel being broken away to versevto the direction of the coil-turns maybe reduced to a minimum onlywhen the space be? tween adjacent coil turns is reduced to a miniutilizing the available space to the best advantage.

1 are spaced from wire center towirecenter aembodiment of the inventionselected merely for descriptive purposes is shown similar to Fig-LP members-'4 are substantially semi-cylindricalin expandfthemandr'el."-

Preferably, the turns of the first coil layer lie, except for short distances at the points y I the-*pingfi. -The springs 9 are'maintained under distance slightly greater than the" maximum wire.-diaineter.-'-' The turns of the succeeding layers lie, except for short distances at the points of cross-over, in the grooves-between the turns'of the preceding layer; Such acoilwill have-smaller overall dimensions than a coil'of the same" number of turns and kind of wire Wound-in some other manner, and consequently will require less wire for a given number of turns. v a: .-t a '-Referring to'Figs. '1' and 3, a spindle lfi sup ports a hub-2. 'The -hub' '2 may be permanently attached-to the spindle 1-6, or, preferably, the hub "2 ma'y be removabl'y secured to the spindle in-any desir'able' manner.- "Thef'spindle- -16 i will be' connecte'd .to'-' asuitable sourceof driving pov'verso that it can be rotated whenla- 'c'oilisto bewound: Conveniently ,-the spindle 16 may be the-windingspindle of a coil Winding machine, H or it' mayflbethe'shaft of an-electric motor; 5 bAt its outer end the hub "2 is provided with ahead-flange l-z- As may best-be seen in Figs. 2 and 4, the flange 1 preferably hastwo or'l'nore radialslots 17' which permit" the positioning of clampingbars asfhereinafterdescribed to 'pre'- vent-unwinding of-= the completed "coil when the mandrel is "collapsed-and the coil is removed from t d 1 i L. 5 -r (I. ,s u A" 1 -'I 'he-hoa'd--flange -has I a-" ce'ntral bore intowhich one "ae'nd 1 'o'f eachof the arcuate-shaped mandrel co'r'e members 4 -and- 5 e'xt'endl Thecentral b'ore limits outward radial movement of the core members' whe'n the mandrel is expandedin themannei hereinafterdescribed. The coreform; 1 and the outer" surfaces of the core --mem'-'- bers preferably are-smooth;- The, longitudinal edges of the eo're nie'mbers 4 are tapered wardl-y; and the score members 5"are tapered an a the revers 'idirecti'on and extend along and lie' 5 between the adJacentedges' of the membe'rs 4.- B'e ea'use of the tapere'd edgesfof the core mem hers- 4 and sj rauiar movement of the members 5 outwardly will force the members 4 apart and i-n'aybe s' e'en in Figs. Z'a'nd 4, the end of' each'of the members 4 which-projects into the 1 bore of the headfiange 1"is provided with a radial" outwardly extending pin 6. '--These pins'fl Gare slidablyre'ceived in radial'guideways 7 in the en'd flange 1 A spiral spring 9 in each of theguideways "T' bea'rs against the outer end of j compression, as by means of the threaded plugs iii-and norrnally =tend'' to force the pins 6 and members 4 will be forced apart and the mandrel will be expanded. When the screws 10 are turned in the opposite direction the members 5 will be permitted to move radially inward, whereupon the core members '4 will be forced radially inward under the influence of the springs 9 to collapse the mandrel.

The members 5 are provided along their outer edges with a plurality of equally spaced grooves preferably lying in planes perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the mandrel, and with the grooves of one member circumferentially aligned with the grooves of the other member. When the tapered members 5 are moved radially outwardtoexpand the mandrel, the ridges between the grooves along the outer edges ofv the members 5project outward a slight distance beyond the adjacent, smooth, circumferential faces of the members 4; The spacing of the grooves from root center to root center preferably is, sub

. stantially equal to or slightly greater than the diameter of the wire which isto be-wound on the mandrel. 'In practicethere are slight variations in wire diameter, even in short lengths of wire, and forthis reason ;it isdesirable to make the spacing ofthe grooves slightly greater than the maximum wire diameter, for example1 to 2 %'greater. Since the ridges between the grooves project out from the face. of the man- 'drel core, the ridges will individually engage the turns of thefirst coil layer at circumferentially spaced points topositively position and hold the turns in place. o

, When the mandrel is in collapsed condition, the ridges along the outer edges of the tapered members 5 are completely submerged between the adjacent edgesof the members 4. Consequently, when the mandrel is collapsed, a coil can be slid off ofthe mandrel, without having the inner layer of turns scraped by the wire holding ridges. Itwill be apparent that this featurelessens the danger of, breaking the insulation or displacing coil turns duringthe operation of removing a coil from the mandrel.

. 1 As may be seen in Figs, 1 andB, a tail flange 11 is provided for engagingthe freeends of the core members 4 and 5, and .suitablemeans are provided for. forcing the tail, flange against the ends of the core members during the expansion of the mandrel and the coil; winding operation.

By way of, example, the tail flange 11 is secured.

on one end of a spindle 12 which is aligned with the spindle 16, and is longitudinally adjustable with respect thereto. r

The tail flange 11 is providedpn its inner face with a. frusto-conical shaped centering stud 13,

and an annular, recess 14 encirclingsaid stud,

The inner edges of the core members 5 are tapered at their free endsso that as thetail flange 11 is moved toward the mandrelcore the centeragement of the ends of. the core members 4 and 5 with the outer wall of the annular recess 14.

The tail flange 11 preferably provided with two or more radial slots 18 which are angularly aligned with theradial slots 17 in the head flange 1. After a coil has been woundon the mandrel, U-s'naped clamping bars may be positioned on the coil winding, the legs of theplamping bars entering the radial slots 1'] and 18 and engaging the ends of the coil. After the clamping bars have been so positioned, the tail flange 11 may be withdrawn from the mandrel core, the mandrel collapsed, and the coil removed therefrom without danger of the end turns of the coil moving out of position.

Fig. 3 shows the mandrel in collapsed condition, with the tail flange 11 withdrawn from the end of the mandrel core. To expand the mandrelpreparatory to winding a coil, the spindle 12 and the tail flange 11 will be moved to the left, the centering stud 13 engaging thetapered inner edges of the members to force these members radially outward, thereby, forcing. the members 4 radially outward and expanding the mandrel. The screws 10 are turned to draw and hold the other ends ofthe members 5 radially outward to insure complete-expansion of the mandrel, as shown in Fig. 1. 1

In winding a 'coil upon the mandrel, the mandrel is first expanded. The 1 end of. the wirefrom the supply spool is secured ;on the hub 2 or spindle 16 in any suitable manner, as by wrapping two or three turnsabout the-hub 2. In the embodiment disclosed the wire will be secured on the head flange end. ;,The wire is then carried into theangle between theimandrel core and the head-flange 1,, either through one of the radial slots 1'7 or through another radial slot provided for this purpose. The spindleu16 is then rotated, the first turn of the coilfalling in the angle between the-flanged, and the man-:

drel core, and being positively-held there in a plane perpendicular tothe longitudinal axis of:

the mandrel by the head ,flange, the ridges on. the members 5, and the tension applied'tothe wire as it isdrawn onto the mandrel.- Uponthe substantial completion of the first full turn the wirebyreason ofthe tension exerted on it and its riding up on the first part of theturn,

is caused to move longitudinallyalong the mandrel a distance: equal to the diameter of theof cross-over, and that each turn .isheldin place at circumferentially spacedhpoints by the ridges 15.

If the distance between thezmandreltand. the

wire supply or wire, guide S not toosshort relative to the length ,of the; coil to be wound,- the" wire will move automatically from one groove to the next groove when the wire engages the first part of the turn, and no additional means will be required for causingthe wire to move: longitudinally along the mandrel; In other cases it may be found desirable to provide a suitablci transversing wire guide moving back and forth parallel to the rotatingma'ndrel to. insure the desired laying on of the wire in the; grooves.

When the last complete circumferential groove on the mandrel corehas been filled, the;

* winding of coils.

wire-will ride up on the top" of the first.;coil layer,-,. and, under tensioinwill fall into a groove between either the ,last turn.of the first layer and the tail flange, or in the groove between the last twoturns of the .first layer.z The-course taken herebythe ,wireis'dependent; upon whether the last groove on the wire, receiving core brings the last turn of the first layerone half awire diameter-distant from the tail flange, or flush against the tail flange. If the last grooveof the wire-receiving .mandrel core is a full groove, the even numbered layers ofthe coil will eachhave one less turn than the odd numbered layers, while if the last groove oi the core is a half groove each coillayer will have the same number of. turns. In the embodiment shown the last groove is a half groove. =Upon further rotation of-themandrel the second and following coil layers are wound as was'the first, the turns of the preceding layers serving as, the wire positioning ridges.. I e e i I Whenthe d sired. number of turns are wound on the mandrel, rotation of the mandrel is stopped, the wire is severed and its ends is suitably secured to prevent unwinding, the inner coil lead is loosened from the hub 2, and the clamping bars are positioned on the coil as hereinbefore described. The tail flange is then withdrawn from the mandrel core, and the mandrel is collapsed by loosening the screws 10. The coil may then be removed from the mandrel core and tied to hold the turns in place, after which the clamping bars may be removed.

This invention provides a mandrel which is simple in construction and operation, and which is adapted to wind accurately and at high speed layer Wound coils having minimum overall dimensions. The mandrel may be readily expanded and collapsed, thereby permitting rapid The narrow grooved zones extending longitudinally along the mandrel surface positively position and hold the turns of the first coil layer in place, and the turns of succeeding layers are laid in the grooves between adjacent turns of the immediately precedwill be necessary to substitute different arcuate shaped members for those already attached to the head flange.

It will be understood that the invention may be variously modified and embodied within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. An expansible and collapsible coil winding mandrel comprising, in combination, two substantially semi-cylindrical members having their longitudinal edges tapered inwardly, an end flange, means securing said members at their ends on one face of said flange to form a substantially cylindrical coil-receiving core, said securing means permitting relative movement of the members radially of the end flange, means normally tending to move said members toward each other to collapse the mandrel, tapered members extending longitudinally along and between adjacent edges of said semi-cylindrical memg rbers, said tapered members being grooved transversely to their longitudinal axes along their outer edges, a second end flange for said core, and means for moving said tapered members radially outward to force said semi-cylindrical members apart and expand the mandrel.

An expansibleaandwycollapsible coil windin mandrel-comprising,- in combination, a plurality of arcuate shaped sectional members forminga substantially cylindrical coremcertain of, said members having smooth .outer surfaces,- and certain; others of said members being provided on their outer surfaces withmeans projectingput beyond the smooth surfaces of adjacent mem bers-when the mandrel is expanded for. positively positioning turns of wire, endflanges for saidcore, and means for moving; the wire positioning members radially inward ,below;,the smooth outer surfaces of I adjacent smooth-surfaced members to collapse the mandrel. j; 3. An expansible and collapsiblecoil,winding mandrelcomprising, L in combination, two end flanges, a plurality of arcuateshaped sectional members extending between said flanges and forming a smooth, substantially cylindrical core, a plurality of narrow me mbers extendingbe: tween said flanges and lying between. adjacent edgesof said ,sectional members, said narrow members having a plurality of parallel, transverse wire-positioning ridges along their outer edges, and means for moving said narrow members radially of the core to cause the ridges either to project above or to be depressed below the smooth outer surface of the core.

4. An expansible and collapsible coil winding mandrel comprising, in combination, a plurality of arcuate shaped sectional members, an end flange, means securing each of said arcuate shaped members at one end to the end flangeso that the arcuate shaped members form a sub stantially cylindrical core, means for bodily adjusting said arcuate shaped members radially relative to the end flange while preventing longitudinal displacement of said members relative to the end flange, a second end flange, and means for securing said second end flange against the free end of the core, the expanded mandrel core having throughout its length between end flanges a circumferentially continuous wire receiving surface and the collapsed mandrel core having throughout its length between end flanges a circumferentially discontinous surface.

5. An expansible and collapsible coil winding mandrel comprising, in combination, a plurality of arcuate shaped sectional members forming a substantially cylindrical core, means securing said members at one end of the core to an end flange, said means permitting radial expansion and collapse of the core uniformly throughout its entire length, and a second end flange having a frusto-conical hub adapted to enter the free end of the core'to expand the."

mandrel.

6. An expansible and collapsible coil winding mandrel comprising, in combination, a plurality of arcuate shaped sectional members, an end flange, and means securing each of said arcuate shaped members atone end to the end flange so that the arcuate shaped members form a substantially cylindrical core, said securing means permitting radial adjustment of said arcuate shaped members uniformly throughout their entire length relative to the end flange without longitudinal movement.

7. .An expansible and collapsible coil winding 313i mandrel comprising, in combination, a plurality of arcuate shaped sectional members separated 'arcuate shaped members being smooth, and-the outer surfaces of :the spacing members being grooved in planes perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of thecore.

8. An expansible and collapsible coil winding mandrel comprising, incombination, a plurality of arcuate shaped sectional members separated from each other by a plurality of tapered spacing members, the assembly forming a substantially'cylindrical core, the outer surfaces of the arcuate shaped members being smooth, and the outer surfaces of the spacing members being grooved in planes perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the core for positively positioning each turn of the first coil layer, the grooves of the spacing members being circumferentially aligned, and means for moving said spacing members to expand and collapse the mandrel.

9. An'expansible and collapsible coil winding mandrel comprising, in combination, a plurality of arcuate shaped sectional members assembled to form a substantially cylindrical core, certain of said members having a smooth outer surface, the aggregate extentof said'smooth surface being greater than half of the total cylindrical surface of the core, certain others of said members being provided with-outer surfaces which are grooved in planes perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the core for positively positioning the turns of the first coil layer, the grooves of said grooved members being circumferentially aligned. I J

10. An expansible'and collapsiblecoil winding mandrel comprising, in combination, two end flanges and a coil receiving core composed of a plurality of segments which, when expanded, provide a circumferentially continuous wire receiving surface, some of said segments having smooth outer surfaces and others of said segments having projections for individually positioning the coil turns, and means for moving said latter segments inwardly of the core to collapse the mandrel and free the coil.

EDWARD SNYDER. 

